We analyze Spitzer GLIMPSE , MSX , and WMAP images of the Milky Way to identify 8 micron and free-free sources in the Galaxy .
Seventy-two of the eighty-eight WMAP sources have coverage in the GLIMPSE and MSX surveys suitable for identifying massive star forming complexes ( SFC ) .
We measure the ionizing luminosity functions of the SFCs and study their role in the turbulent motion of the Galaxy ’ s molecular gas .
We find a total Galactic free-free flux f _ { \nu } = 46177.6 Jy ; the 72 WMAP sources with full 8 micron coverage account for 34263.5 Jy ( \sim 75 \% ) , with both measurements made at \nu =94GHz ( W band ) .
We find a total of 280 SFCs , of which 168 have unique kinematic distances and free-free luminosities .
We use a simple model for the radial distribution of star formation to estimate the free-free and ionizing luminosity for the sources lacking distance determinations .
The total dust-corrected ionizing luminosity is Q = 2.9 \pm 0.5 ~ { } x~ { } 10 ^ { 53 } ~ { } { photons } ~ { } s ^ { -1 } , which implies a galactic star formation rate of \dot { M } _ { * } = 1.2 \pm 0.2 ~ { } M _ { \sun } ~ { } yr ^ { -1 } .
We present the ( ionizing ) luminosity function of the SFCs , and show that 24 sources emit half the ionizing luminosity of the Galaxy .
The SFCs appear as bubbles in GLIMPSE or MSX images ; the radial velocities associated with the bubble walls allow us to infer the expansion velocity of the bubbles .
We calculate the kinetic luminosity of the bubble expansion and compare it to the turbulent luminosity of the inner molecular disk .
SFCs emitting 80 \% of the total galactic free-free luminosity produce a kinetic luminosity equal to 65 \% of the turbulent luminosity in the inner molecular disk .
This suggests that the expansion of the bubbles is a major driver of the turbulent motion of the inner Milky Way molecular gas .